Second Chance
by MMK96
Summary: After a stressful week at work Regina decides to unwind at the local bar 'The Jolly Rodger', where she stumbles into a rather charming stranger, Robin. Could they be each other's second chance.
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first attempt at a fic, just wanted to give a shout out to Jen who inspired many of my ideas and was the first person to read and give amazing feedback! Thank you for all your help, and to all my other friends who supported me with this. Any thoughts and feedback would be much appreciated, so please leave a review. Thank you**

Friday night was rapidly disappearing, and instead of being tucked up on her sofa with Henry watching a film, she was stuck in a stuffy meeting room fighting to keep her eyes open. It's a good job she had the sense to text Henry's sitter, Ashley in her lunch break asking her to stay an extra couple of hours tonight; she figured that after the week she's had at work this was bound to happen tonight.

She had been in meetings all day, staring at the same spot on the wall listening to her boss drone on and on about the same subject for hours and still they were getting nowhere. If she had to spend one more second in this room listening to Gold and Mal argue over the same topic without coming to a decision, she may have to scream. Pressing her index fingers against her temples, she attempted to suppress the dull ache that had been throbbing across her forehead for the last hour, she was tired and needed to go home, or leave this office at the very least; so when Gold suggested they pack up for the evening and reconvene bright and early Monday morning it was music to her ears.

She decided that after the day she has had, she'd earned herself at least _a_ glass of wine or maybe several and although she knew it would not help her headache, it would certainly help her forget this awful week. She wouldn't usually stop for drinks after work because she doesn't like drinking around her son, but as Ashley had agreed to stay she was in no rush to go home. Any other time she would hang back to see if Mal was free to come with, but today she needed time to herself, even if it was in a bar full of rowdy punters.

She settled on trying 'The Jolly Roger', a new bar just down the road from her house, that way she could walk home if necessary. Her first choice usually would have been 'The Rabbit Hole', but after the way things ended with Graham she had sworn off ever going within a ten mile radius of that dive. She didn't want to risk running into him and seeing him with a certain blonde, who co-incidentally worked behind the bar; she should've known when he started spending all his time there that _she_ was the reason. Just the thought of them being around each other, him looking at Emma with the same hunger that he used to look at her with, was enough to make her blood boil, it may have been ancient history but the pain was still raw. Graham was the first person she'd even thought about having a future with since Daniel died, and he took advantage of that.

"Snap out of it" she whispered to herself, attempting to fight back the tears that threatened to come. Straightening her shoulders, smoothing her hair and readjusting the blue blazer she's wearing, she walks through the doors with a sheer look of determination. She headed straight toward the bar and she was not going to leave until she had wiped those stupid thoughts Of Graham and Emma clean from her mind. As she sits on a bar stool, she is greeted with a friendly smile.

"What can I get ya sister?" The man behind the bar asks with a grin.

"Glass of Tempranillo." She replies, before pausing and speaking again, "Large preferably. And keep them coming," She says, the bartender nodding before fixing her drink.

When he returns he places the glass in front of her "Rough day?"

Regina lifts her head, shoots him a look, which must have works because it has him gesturing a sorry, and slowly backing away to serve the next person.

She takes her time with the first glass, savouring every sip whilst being completely lost in her thoughts, her mind consumed with the pain of re-living moments with Graham, remembering his touch and how good it felt to be wanted, truly wanted. But those thoughts were soon interrupted by the sickening realisation of how much time she had wasted over something that wasn't real. The worst thing about it was that he tried to make it seem as if it was her that was the problem, not him. That somehow she wouldn't let him love her. For a long time she believed it, a small part of her still does. He knew just what to say to her to make her feel like shit. The words "I don't feel anything when I'm with you" piercing straight through her like a dagger to her heart. It was thoughts like these which led to drink number two, which she all but inhaled, so when it came to her third glass, the bartender left the bottle.

The room was beginning to spin for Regina; she did not plan on getting this drunk tonight. Usually wine doesn't affect her this much, but then she remembered that thanks to Gold and his slave driving ways, she had skipped lunch and worked through.

Looking at her watch with squinted eyes, attempting to focus enough to read the time, _shit_ ; it's way past when she was supposed to be home to relieve Ashley. Deciding she needs some air as she can't go home in this state, she puts down more than the amount she owes, stumbles off her stool and heads towards the exit. Just as she's about to pull open the door, she turns towards the bar and yells a rather slurred "Keep the change" and carries on walking, completely oblivious to the man obstructing her exit.

Next thing they are colliding into each other, with the remains of his drink spilling down his toned torso and her rather expensive blazer.

"Hey!"

"Watch where you're going, you incompetent fool!" she scoffs loudly, rubbing the patch on her blazer that was now stained with booze. A rather stunned Robin opens his mouth to reply but before he can say anything she interrupts, "Do you know how much this blazer cost? Well it's now ruined, thanks to you, Idiot."

"Are you quite finished?" he says, a smug grin etching its way across his face, which Regina returns with a threatening scowl, her eyes locked on his. "I think you'll find that it you bumped into me, love."

"And what's more, out of the two of us I think I was the one who came off worse." he rambled.

"At least you can take your blazer off, where I now have to go home reeking like a brewery." He chuckled. "Unless it was your plan all along to get me naked." He said with a cheeky wink; the grin on his face now growing bigger. This comment earned him a tight smile from Regina, her cheeks turning pink with embarrassment.

Why was he flirting? She had just wasted half a well earned pint. He couldn't help it though; she was stunning. He found himself wanting to make that smile appear more often, even though he had only known her a few minutes.

She looks him up and down, stalling for as long as she can, trying to think of a witty comeback, finding herself very distracted by his bright blue eyes, and his now very transparent white vest. She can't tell if it was the alcohol or if she actually finds him attractive. Realising that nothing had been said for quite a while, she dismisses every thought of him.

"What kind if simpleton stands in front of the exit? Really, you were asking for this to happen." And with that she barges past him so hard that next thing she knew she's on the floor.

Regina's a mess; there was no way Robin was letting her go home alone, not like this so against his better judgement, he leans over her and stretches out his arm offering his hand to her, "Milady".

She looks up with a sideways glace and says "It's Regina, and I'm fine," pushing his hand out the way, finding her way to her feet. Robin was carefully studying her from behind, trying not to stare at her amazing figure. Seeing how much she was staggering, he boldly walks next her linking his arm in the crook of hers.

"At least let me walk you home." He smiles "After all, what kind of a gentleman would I be to spill my drink over you and not even offer to make sure you get home safe?"

He knows that if he agrees with her version of events that she would be more likely to let him.

Regina looks at him with an air of caution in her eyes, he doesn't usually accept invitations like this from strangers, but there was something about him that she trusted. She wasn't sure if it was his kind eyes or the cute little dimples that appeared every time he smiled that made her instantly feel safe with him, so she accepted. She had to admit the thought of having someone around when she was in this state put her mind at ease, plus she was sure the walk home would help her sober up. She didn't want to wake Henry.

As she only lived round the corner, the walk home didn't last long. It occurred to her as they were almost reaching her door, that she didn't even know what his name was. So, embarrassed that it had taken this long, she asked him quietly.

"Robin Locksley, at your service." He grinned.

"Are you always this charming?" She asks bluntly.

"Only when I'm in the presence of a beautiful woman." He replies with as much charm as he could lay on.

Looking at him with one eyebrow raised she chuckles, "Does that line really work?"

Robin raises one arm to scratch the back of his head whilst looking down at his feet, as if to say not really, but her attention is now on the incredible muscle tone of his arm which is now flexed and she's lost in the thought of what it would be like to be held tightly against him in those arms.

Snapping out of it, she attempts to gain control of the situation "This is me" she says and lingers a little longer on her porch, secretly not wanting to leave his company, kicking herself for getting this drunk; her emotions are all over the place. She was seriously considering making a move on this rather attractive stranger. after all if things went wrong she would never have to see him again, and it had been such a long time since she had been kissed.

Before she knows what's happening, he's heading back down the path and she's running after him, grabbing his arm to stop him. When she leans in for a kiss, to her sheer embarrassment, she finds him dodging her mouth.

"As much as I want to, and trust me I _really_ do, it goes against my honour to take advantage of a woman when drunk." A look of sheer horror and embarrassment paint themselves across Regina's face and she has to take a step back.

Noticing her embarrassment, Robin grabs her wrist pulls out a pen from his pocket, scribbling his number on the back of her hand before placing a soft kiss where he'd just written. "I don't want you to regret anything in the morning." He smiles, and with that Regina looks up and smiles at the hand where he had left his details, her teeth gently tugging at her bottom lip trying to hide the excitement she was feeling.

After lingering for just a moment, he makes his way down the path, stopping at the end for one last look. "When you're ready, I'm only a phone call away." He says, flashing her a dimpled grin before heading out into the night, and back towards 'The Jolly Roger'.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you all so much for the favourites, follows and reviews! Hope you all enjoy the next chapter. As usual any feedback would be much appreciate so if you have time please leave a review, I love knowing what you all think :)**

 **Shout out to Jen for being my Beta, as usual much appreciated. Thank you also to**

 **Polly for helping me when I was stuck!**

* * *

Morning hit Regina like a tonne of bricks. A stream of light shone through from the gap in her bedroom curtains and hit her closed eyelids until she couldn't bear it anymore. Regina had been rudely awakened, and she was not happy about it.

She hadn't been this hung-over since the last Christmas do Mal had organized for work, when she had made the mistake of partaking in a lethal cocktail of wine and tequila. She would have been fine had she not let Mal convince her into having that extra shot. When she thinks about it, Mal is the cause of most of her bad decisions when it comes to alcohol.

That night she was reminded that she was no longer in her twenties and possibly couldn't handle her drink like she used to.

The throbbing coming from the back of her head brought her out of her thoughts and back to the room in front of her that was still spinning slightly. It was going to take all her willpower not to throttle Gold when she saw him, after all he had refused to give her a lunch break.

This was all his fault.

She rolled over on to her side, trying her best to ignore the wave of nausea that came with the movement and turned her head away from the hideously bright sunlight that peered through the curtains before looking at the clock. 10am had been and gone. She hadn't slept this long since before Henry was born.

 _Henry._

Sitting bolt upright, she pushed down the nausea with the overwhelming feeling of guilt. Is he awake? Another thing to add to the list of regrets about last night's antics. Henry is never awake before she is; not since he was a toddler. She likes it that way, it gives her time to organize their day and allows her a little time to herself. Time to be Regina, before Mom mode kicks in and it's not just herself she is responsible for.

She rouses herself from the bed, the thought of Henry enough to fight the urge to turn over and sleep a little while longer. She braces herself and heads towards the kitchen for a much needed caffeine fix. She was sure this would help return her to her normal working state.

"Morning Mom!" Henry greets her as she enters the kitchen, his beautiful eyes staring up at her, his warm smile causing one of her own to spread across her face.

He has his father's eyes; and she loved him all the more for that. For a moment she gets lost in the overwhelming feeling of sadness at the thought of Daniel, she's not sure if it's the general regretful mood she's in this morning but she suddenly feels wistful and teary eyed and the love of her life not being able to see the wonderful young man their son has grown up to be.

She takes him in as he sits at the island munching on a bowl of sugary sweet cereal that he's only allowed at the weekend as a special treat. He's still wearing his favourite pyjamas, a picture of wolverine and some other character in purple shorts who Regina could never remember the name of printed on the front. His hair is un-brushed and sticking up on end. She notes how happy he looks, blissfully unaware of how much of a state his mother was in the previous night.

"Good Morning, my boy." She greets him, planting a soft kiss on his forehead before heading towards the coffee machine.

"Someone's up late this morning. Wouldn't have anything to do with why I didn't get to see you before I went to sleep last night would it?" He says with one eyebrow raised, his face splitting into that cheeky grin he knows Regina can never stay mad at him for.

After turning the machine on Regina turns around to face her son; her eyes locking on his in a way that tells him she's about to teach him a lesson. "It's not polite to pry into others business and that _young man_ is none of your business.

"But Mom" he says while the smile on his face slowly dwindles into a look of guilt.

"No buts, she says silencing him, so not to have to explain herself to her teenager. "Now hurry up and finish your breakfast so you can get dressed, you're supposed to be meeting Grace in an hour." She gives him a warm smile to indicate that she isn't really mad at him and he beams back at her before heading upstairs.

After what felt like an absolute age, the pot finally finished brewing and she sits down with her much needed bucket of coffee. As she takes the first sip she notices the now faded and smudged black ink scrawled across the back of her hand. She stares at it for a while longer before the intense feeling of nausea bubbles up from the pit of her stomach. Flashbacks of the way she had behaved last night playing themselves in her head. It was his number, the man from the bar last night. Robin. The man she had foolhardily tried to kiss last night. She has absolutely no idea what she was thinking; only that she is never drinking that much on an empty stomach again. No amount of alcohol could make her forget the feeling of sheer embarrassment after being rejected by someone she barely even knew. She looks at the time in attempt to distract herself from her thoughts, it works.

She doesn't have time to be fretting over drunken mistakes; she needs to get her teenager moving so he won't be late meeting Grace.

* * *

Once Henry was dropped at Grace's for the day, she was left to her own devices, which ordinarily would have been ideal but today she wanted to be distracted. She didn't want to have to face up to what had happened last night, and yet he was all she could think about. It doesn't help her that she still has the faint black reminder of it scrawled over her hand, but she can't quite bring herself to rub it off yet.

Why is she still thinking about him? She knew nothing about this man other than his first name, and yet he is the sole occupancy of her mind right now. What was it about him that made her trust him enough to walk her home? And most importantly why had she thrown herself at him. She had been that drunk before and managed to control herself, so what was different about him? His eyes, there was something about his eyes that made her knees weak. She may have been drunk, but one glance at the bright cerulean eyes staring back her and all common sense went out the window. She should call him, to apologize for her behaviour if nothing else. She types in the number written on the back of her hand and dials. It rings a couple of times before she is met with his low, soothing tones.

"This is Robin Locksley."

She opens her mouth to speak, however words seem to elude her the second she hears his voice.

"Hello. Is anyone there?"

She attempts to speak once more time, but again nothing comes out. For goodness sake Regina say something, you called him and you're acting like a foolish schoolgirl. Why did he have this effect on her?

"Hello!" Robin bellows one last time, before she rolls her eyes at how stupid she is behaving and hangs up.

Great, not only does she make a pass at him but now she also hangs up on his without so much as even a hello. This is too much for to deal with alone on a hangover, so she settles on texting Mal to see if she's free for a catch up.

 _'_ _Hey,_

 _You free for a coffee? Got some news… R_

 _x'_

 _'_ _Sounds intriguing…. Yours in 20? M_

 _x'_

 _'_ _Perfect!_

 _R x'_


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey, sorry it took so long to update! This chapter is slightly longer than usual and I really enjoyed writing this one. Thank you so much for all the wonderful support you have all shown, it means to world to me. Please let me know what you think, every comment spurs me on! :)**

 **Massive shout out to my wonderful Beta and everyone that has helped or given me feedback on this I love you all!**

 **Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

After what seems like the longest twenty minutes of her life, Regina is pulled from her thoughts by the familiar sound of a pair of stiletto heels clacking against her pathway. A wave of nausea hits her at the thought of having to explain her foolish antics to her best friend; she hates how much this man is affecting her.

Gathering herself, she opens the door to greet the tall blonde waiting on the other side. Without so much of a chance to even say hello, the blonde looking her up and down;

"Well, don't you look like death warmed up." Mal states as her eyes scan a rather fragile Regina with one brow raised.

"Nice to see you too, you old Dragon!" Regina quips back, a devious grin splitting her face.

"Less of the old thank you very much, your Majesty! Now are you going to invite me in or are we just going to stand here for the duration of the day" Mal says, ducking down to plant a kiss on Regina's flushed cheek.

To a stranger it would seem as if Mal and Regina didn't get along, but that was just the type of rapport they had with one another, they just love to tease each other.

They first became friends within a few months of Regina working at 'Happily Ever After Publishing' as a junior editor, which was shortly after Henry was born. The first few months of working with one another were challenging to say the least, on account of the fact that they were both very stubborn women who weren't used to backing down. Mal was slightly superior to Regina; although that did not stop her from giving her a piece of her mind when she thought Mal was out of line, and in turn, Mal respected Regina for that.

Mal was well aware the others in the office called her 'The Dragon' because of her fiery temper. She saw a bit of herself in Regina, and because of that she eventually decided to take her under her wing. Soon enough, Regina was named 'The Evil Queen' of the office, and together they were the most feared and respected duo in the office. This friendship was later consolidated when Mal took it upon herself at the office party to save her from the clutches of the office sleaze, Sidney Glass. Although she didn't need rescuing, Mal wanted to protect her and Regina was touched by the way that she had her back, even if it meant falling victim to him herself.

It was nice to know that she wasn't alone.

Regina needed that type of friendship today, and she knew regardless of whether it was what she wanted to hear or not, Mal would set her straight and tell her what was the right thing to do.

"Shhh! Not so loud, my head already feels like it's going to explode." Regina whispers whilst tilting her head and gesturing towards the kitchen, "there's a pot just brewed, I'll explain once I have more caffeine in my system."

Regina leads Mal down the hallway to the kitchen where their senses are flooded with the smell of fresh coffee. Regina pours two cups, slides one across the counter towards Mal and sits down with what may be her fourth cup of coffee in the last hour. She is wired and on edge, not a good combination of things to be around the one woman who has the ability to see straight through her.

"So Gold was being a real ass yesterday, wasn't he?" she says in attempt to ease herself into the topic of him.

"Regina dear, I know you didn't bring me here to make small talk, your text said you have some news and judging by the look on your face it's fairly big, what's eating you?" Mal is never one to beat around the bush when it comes to drawing out information, especially from Regina.

Regina rolls her eyes and sighs, "I hate it when you do this."

"Do what dear?" Mal queries, her smile growing.

"You read me so well, it's not fair."

"Isn't that what friends are supposed to do? Besides we're not so different sometimes, you and I." She gives her a warm smile, the kind that reaches her eyes, before swiftly breaking the eye contact and getting back to the matter at hand. "Now stop changing the subject and tell me what I came to hear."

"Fine. I did something totally out of character last night, and I've woken up and it hasn't gone away, in fact I think I may have made it worse," Regina spat out, her cheeks turning pink at just the mention of it. It's when she starts to tuck that little strand of hair behind her ear, a telltale sign that she's nervous, that Mal gives her a gentle nudge.

"Why don't you start from the beginning, I can't be of much help unless I know all the facts," she tells her, gently placing her hand atop of Regina's.

Regina takes a deep breath and begins again.

"It's all Gold's fault, after how insufferable he made our day yesterday I decided that I needed a drink. And of course I can't go to my usual bar because of you know who, so I went somewhere else and it got me thinking about him more and one thing led to another and I'm steaming drunk and letting a stranger walk me home."

The whole time she was speaks Mal doesn't react; she just sits in silence, her face stoic and unreadable. This only makes Regina speak even faster from nerves.

"Next thing I know I'm throwing myself at this man only to be rejected and left with a phone number on my hand."

Mal finally softens her gaze and speaks, "and that's everything?"

"Well not exactly." Regina is now deliberately avoiding eye contact with Mal, "I may have worked up the courage this morning to call the number to apologize at the least, but when he answered I lost my nerve and just hung up like a pathetic teenager." Regina lets out a sigh and waits for her friend to speak.

"Feel better now?"

"I do actually" her voice now thick with sarcasm. "But now you see why I need you, I'm clearly not thinking straight and I need an outside perspective on how to handle the situation I've stupidly got myself into."

"First things first, does this attractive stranger have a name?" one side of her mouth curling up into a wicked smirk.

"I never said he was attractive!"

"You didn't have too; your eyes did the talking for you."

Regina shoots her friend a look in attempt to shun her mocking,

"Of course I know his name, not even drunk Regina is that careless! His name is Robin Locksley," a smile creeps across her face at the memory of how kindly he had treated her last night.

The second his name leaves her lips Mal's attention is no longer on Regina but on her phone as she frantically searches for him on social media. It isn't hard to find him, seen as he is the only Robin Locksley from Maine.

"Oh now I see why you're behaving like a lovesick teenager, he's not bad if rugged woodsmen are your type, which I get."

Mortified, Regina snatches the phone from her hand. She freezes when she sees a photo of him staring back at her on the screen. His warm smile and calming blue eyes igniting feelings from deep within her, feelings she had long forgotten, and again she bites the inside of her cheek fighting away the smile that wants to light its way across her face.

"You really do have it bad huh?" Mal remarks, breaking Regina out of her daydream.

Regina shakes her head as she slides the phone back across the table towards Mal.

"For god's sake Regina, just call him back. I haven't seen you this smitten since, well since you met Graham."

Regina bites the corner of her bottom lip and looks down at her hands, now fidgeting with her coffee cup;

"I have Henry to think about, it's not that simple. What if things do go well and we start dating, enough to allow him into Henrys life, and one day he decides to up and leave us, just like Graham. I'm not sure Henry could handle another person leaving. Things are just fine on my own; I only have room for one man in my life, my son."

"You mean you're not sure you can deal with the rejection, Henry is a resilient boy he will be just fine."

Damn Mal and her ability to read her so well.

"While I am all for an independent woman speech, we both know that deep down you are way too soft to be alone for the rest of your life, that's more my style. You've known me long enough to trust my opinion right?" Regina nods, "Well trust me when I say that not every guy is like Graham, this man is clearly into you otherwise he wouldn't have behaved so gentlemanly towards you. The man gave you his number, not a marriage proposal! You deserve happiness, no matter how much you let Graham make you think you don't. Just let go for once and have some fun!"

For a moment Regina is lost for words, she had forgotten how frankly Mal speaks.

"I know you're right, this is why I needed you here. Every time I went to speak I just couldn't, I'm not sure I can find the words."

"Then why not try texting him, you are good with words, especially when you've been given time to prepare."

Text him, she could manage that. Regina reaches across the table and grabs Mal's hand;

"Thank you for this, for always being the one to talk sense into me when I need it!"

"Don't mention it" Regina gives Mal's hand a squeeze and a warm smile. "No seriously don't mention it. I have a reputation to uphold, now hurry up and text him otherwise I might just have to swoop in and take him for myself."

Giving her a quick wink, she swiftly stands up, walks over to the other side of the table and gives Regina a brief hug.

"I'll see myself out; you have a handsome stranger to get acquainted with."

* * *

Regina sits staring at her phone that is placed in between her hands, which are nervously tapping the counter. Mal is right, she's been putting this off for long enough now. She needs to just bite the bullet and text him, but just as she goes to text him Henry's face pops up on her screen. "Hey sweetheart, I'm not due to pick you up for another couple hours, what's up?"

"Mom I don't feel so good, I think I ate too much ice cream can you come get me?"

Great! Just what she needs on a hangover, a sick child who is probably also hopped up on sugar, thanks to Jefferson and his lack of a backbone. Regina is all too aware of how her darling son and his angelic daughter have a way of wrapping him around their little fingers. "Henry Daniel, what did I tell you about overdoing it on sugary snacks!"

Regina hears the sarcasm thick in Henry's voice when he repeats his mothers words back to her "too much sugar will make you sick" Since when did Henry talk to her like that, she certainly didn't teach him to. "I know mom I'm sorry."

Taking pity on him after hearing his apology, she utters soothingly, "I know baby; I'll be there to come get you soon okay?"

"Thanks mom." And with that he hangs up. Taking one last look at her phone she sighs and places it in her pocket, Robin will have to wait. She grabs her keys and makes her way to the door and hopes that she does not lose her courage by the time she gets Henry sorted.

She's exhausted thankfully Henry wasn't physically sick, but it didn't stop him from being restless when it came to bedtime and having to sleep. At least now he's asleep and she's alone with her thoughts, so she can finally figure out what to say to Robin. She begins to type a message.

' _Hi…'_

There, she did it. She actually texted him, even if it was somewhat brief, it was a start. Now all she has to do it wait and see if he replies. Glancing over the clock on her bedside table she notices how late it is. He won't reply tonight surely, so she should just relax and try to get some sleep. Within moments of her head hitting the pillow willingly, she hears the shrill chirping of her phone alerting her that she has a text.

Well that was fast.

' _Sorry who is this?'_

Shit. Well now she feels stupid, in all the nervous excitement she'd forgotten to put her name. She swiftly types a reply.

' _Oh sorry, it's Regina…Mills from the bar last night.'_

' _Well Hello stranger,  
_

 _How's the head been today? X'_

At just the mention of last night from him she feels the heat rising to her cheeks. So he was definitely less of state than she was last night, great.

' _The head's fine thank you, nothing I couldn't handle anyway. X'_

His reply is almost instant.

' _Good, I'm glad! I wouldn't want our first meeting to have a lasting negative impact on you. Xx'_

The fact that he's replied with two kisses makes her smile more than it should. Stop it Regina, focus. She hasn't even got to the reason why she's texting him yet.

' _About last night…_

 _I'm sorry to text you so late, but I wanted to both explain and apologize for my behavior last night. I was in a foul mood yesterday, and well I hadn't eaten anything and had one too many glasses of wine as you well know._

 _I just wanted you to know that I'm not in the habit of throwing myself at total strangers often, and I'm sorry for my inappropriate behavior. X_

' _No apologies necessary Milady, it was definitely one of the more memorable welcomes I've been given. Not to mention I'm still trying to get the rather large stain out of my shirt ;) xx'_

The guilt suddenly hitting her as she remembers spilling her drink all down his fitted white shirt the night before.

' _Send me the dry cleaning bill, I insist! You know where I live; I'll make sure it gets seen too._

 _By the way Thank you for making sure I got home safe last night… and for not letting me make an even bigger fool out of myself by letting me kiss you. X'_

' _Oh so you're admitting the drink spillage was your fault now? Xx'_

This response has her laughing softly out loud to herself. A second response follows.

' _It was no problem, like I said I'm not in the habit of taking advantage of a woman when drunk. And besides if I'm to kiss a woman as breathtaking as you, I would rather she remembers it. That way there's more of a chance of them remembering what a good kisser I am and wanting to repeat it. Xx'_

He called her breathtaking, she wasn't expecting that. She doesn't know how to react, but she does know that his words are definitely having an effect on her and she not quite ready to say goodnight yet.

' _Oh is that so? What makes you so sure I would think you're good kisser? Xx'_

' _Only one way to find out…xx'_

She's enjoying flirting with him. She's not sure whether it's the late hour, or the fact that he's being so responsive that only makes her want to talk to him more. Maybe Mal was right, it wouldn't be such a crazy idea to just let go for once and ask him out. If his very unsubtle flirting is anything to go by she'd say he's interested. It's now or never.

' _Do you maybe want to go for coffee sometime? My treat of course, as a thanks for behaving like such a gentleman towards me. Xx'_

His response takes a while this time. Oh god what if he isn't interested and she really has read this wrong. The panic now sets in as her she feels her heart thumping in her chest. He's obviously thinking of a respectable way to turn her down.

She is pleasantly surprised when he responds a few minutes later.

' _It would be my honour Milady. On one condition though... Xx'_

' _What's that? Xx'_

' _That you let me pay, I'm not sure my pride would let the lady pay on the first date. Where I'm from, we're taught to treat our women like queens. Xx'_

This both infuriates and makes Regina laugh, given the fact that he is oblivious to her office nickname.

' _So much for living in the modern world with independent women ey ;)_

 _But I think I can manage that…say tomorrow at 12. There's a coffee shop near my work called Granny's meet you there? Xx'_

' _Sounds like a plan, until then. Goodnight Regina. Xx'_

' _Goodnight Robin. Xx'_

And with that, Regina places her phone on her nightstand, sets her alarm and snuggles into the warmth of her covers.

For the first time in a while she is going to sleep with a smile on her face.


End file.
